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Wednesday, February 23, 2011

I've been lacking a bit in inspiration for menu planning lately. It's not that I haven't been cooking, but I've been making old favorites instead of trying out new recipes. Last week I'd had enough, so I started browsing some of my favorite blogs for ideas for my weekly menu. I love any and all Mexican food, so when I saw these taquitos, I immediately added them to my weekly menu.

We loved loved loved this dinner. The filling was bright, fresh, and flavorful, and the salt sprinkled on top was a really nice touch. We dipped them into what I call "tomatillo guacamole," which is just mashed avocado mixed with tomatillo salsa. I highly recommend it for these taquitos, as well as just snacking with chips. If you have your chicken cooked and salsa ready, this comes together quite quickly. The filling can be prepped in advance, which would make for an even faster meal. Or, they can be assembled and then frozen for later. Next time I make these, I definitely plan to make a double batch and freeze half.

Preheat the oven to 425 degrees and spray a baking sheet with cooking spray.

In a large bowl, combine the cream cheese with the salsa, lime juice, cumin, chile powder, cayenne, onion powder, garlic, cilantro, scallions, and 1/4 tsp kosher salt. Fold in the chicken and cheeses. Taste and season with additional salt and pepper if necessary.

Working 3 tortillas at a time, stack them on a microwave-safe plate and cover with plastic wrap. Cook 30 seconds, or until tortillas are soft and pliable.

Spoon 2-3 tablespoons of filling onto the lower third of each tortilla, and roll tightly. Place seam side-down on the prepared baking sheet. Repeat with remaining tortillas and filling.

Spray the taquitos lightly with cooking spray, sprinkle with salt. Bake 15-20 minutes, or until the tortillas are crisp and golden-brown. Serve with salsa, sour cream, and/or guacamole.

*This is how I prepare my chicken if I don't have leftover chicken to use: Preheat the oven to 375 degrees. Spread a piece of aluminum foil across a baking sheet, and arrange chicken breasts in a single layer in the center. Sprinkle with salt and pepper, and season as you wish. Fold the aluminum foil over the chicken breasts, and enclose them to form a "packet." Bake the chicken (on the baking sheet) 35-45 minutes, or until it is cooked through.

**To freeze, prepare the taquitos, but before baking, place the baking sheet in the refrigerator until the taquitos are completely cold. Wrap each taquito in plastic wrap or aluminum foil, and freeze. To bake, unwrap the taquitos and cook in a 425 degree oven for 20 minutes (no need to thaw first).

My kids would love these! I will definitely have to try to make them...I love eating them but have never made them myself! I'd love for you to submit this to the M&T Spotlight: http://www.makeandtakes.com/spotlight

I love taquitos and pepperjack cheese. I always pan fry mine in a little oil, because I like them nice and crispy. However, yours look like they got plenty crispy in the oven. I will have to try this recipe and save myself those added calories from the oil.

Came over from The Pioneer Woman's blog today. I just love finding recipes I can adapt...as I L♥VE mexican food, but am allergic to onions and garlic. So, no eating in mexican restaurants or heating tacquitos from a box or opening a jar of salsa for me - EVERYTHING must be made from scratch. Haven't decided what we're having for Cinco de Mayo dinner tonight, but just maybe it will include these. Thanks!! Lisa

Ditto what these last few reviewers said- made these tonight and they were FANTASTIC! My husband, who is rarely so passionate about food, insisted this become a regular on our menu. Love love love! So glad I found you through PW!

Just made these. Didn't have chili powder or cayenne; added a pinch of red pepper flakes. Used canned & drained tomatillos for the salsa verde. Used shredded seasoned pork loin instead of chicken. Assembled half the mixture as taquitos and the rest as quesadillas ( spread on the inside of one flour tortilla, while the other was topped with pepper jack and leftover pork.) Oh my YUM! A huge hit with the family, will def make again.

I made these and LOVED them! I spritzed a little lime on them before the salt and that was kinda nice. Also, I found if you over fill them, they explode or get soggy. 1-2 tablespoons of filling worked for me and the extra thin corn tortillas worked nicely! Will be making them again soon!

Yum!!! These were so tasty! My boyfriend loved these and he's not usually one to try new foods all that often. They were really crispy and just fabulous. I made a double batch of the filling and put half in the freezer to make next week. Thanks!

I made your recipe last night and LOVED them! My son and boyfriend were impressed! I didn't have scallions so I used finely diced red onion and it works great too. We ate them with sour cream and salsa and had a side salad. Thanks! :)

We made them last weekend for the first time. They were terrific and I forgot to add the cheese with the chicken - going to make them again this weekend with the cheese - can't wait. Had fresh pico de gallo to go with them - YUM!

I just found your recipe this week, and made it tonight. It was SO delicious. We only had cheddar cheese, and I added a shallot instead of scallions, and it was just amazing. My husband is head over heels for this recipe. Thanks, this is definitely going into regular rotation in our house!

Had this recipe printed for quite a while and finally got around to it today. Not disappointed,I forgot to buy coriander so used coriander seed and used fresh onion not onion powder. Loved these. Thanks!

Delicious! I just had these for lunch, and even my two and a half year old ate them. I used what I had on hand and subbed onions for scallions, regular salsa for salsa verde and flour tortillas instead of corn. Still yummy. We will be adding these to the rotation!

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